Choral Arts Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Bach Festival are thrilled to invite you to the 37th annual Bach Festival 2013! The celebration of Bach's genius presents three unique programs spanning two weekends and two Center City venues.

We are opening on Sunday afternoon, April 28th, with an entirely improvisational organ recital by Artistic Director Matthew…

Commonwealth plaza was swarming with large groups of teens and young adults, and many appeared wide eyed at possibly their first visit to the Kimmel Center.  The source of all these groups became clear as we waited patiently for the musicians to arrive on stage.  A man with a binder in the third row stood up, faced the…

The Philadelphia International Festival of the Arts (PIFA) 2013 is scaled down significantly from the original festival held in 2011, but that doesn't mean there aren't events with great potential in the lineup.  The Kimmel Center asked me (Sharon Torello) to be a social media ambassador for the event and I scrambled to find bloggers so we could cover all the classical music events in the…

“Ivakhiv’s performance had distinctive charm and subtle profundity…She neither drives nor chases a score, she illuminates it.” – Daily Freeman, New York

PHILADELPHIA—Violinist Solomiya Ivakhiv will perform Brahms’ sonatas at the Philadelphia Ethical Society, April 28, 2013 at 3:00 PM.  Hailed for her versatility as a solo, orchestral, and…

During the process of writing the music for what would be my…

Tempesta di Mare and Choral Arts Philadelphia treated a large audience to an exceptional performance of Handel’s Messiah.  The score used was as close as scholarship can come to the premiere performance led by Handel in Dublin almost 271 years ago.  It called for baroque strings, valveless…

While Trappe, PA is not the first place one thinks of for high quality classical music concerts, CMS has carved a niche that is high quality—bringing world-class artists from New York and Philadelphia to its stage.  It has become a destination for many emerging classical musicians who are about to break onto the world’s stage. 

Last month, I had the opportunity to hear the Academy of Vocal Arts perform a recital with four of their…

Eric Whitacre Singers' one-day only concert in Philadelphia is on Wednesday, March 20th at 8 PM at the Kimmel Center's Verizon Hall. The program called "Inspirations" is presented by…

The Eric Whitacre Phenomenon…

For those familiar with the Curtis Institute’s remarkable contribution to music in Philadelphia, it was perhaps a little less than surprising to hear the informal one-hour…

Flexible seating is one of the attributes that draws ensembles to perform in the beautiful Philadelphia Episcopal Cathedral in University City.  I knew there would be dancers at this new presentation by the Crossing Choir so I was not surprised by the large open space in the front that appeared to be dedicated to that…

Jules Massenet’s fluency as an opera composer is evident in the Academy of Vocal Art’s production of Don Quichotte.  I was delighted to have the opportunity to hear the performance on March 7, 2013. 

Massenet is known in the US largely for Manon and perhaps Werther, but he was known in his native…

On Monday evening in the Kimmel Center’s Perelman Theater the Philadelphia Chamber Music Society presented yet another…

The houses grew fewer and farther between as fields filled in the gaps forming ever larger expanses of open land.  I was headed west, perhaps beyond the official "Greater Philadelphia Region" coverage of LocalArtsLive, but it didn't matter because I wanted to see "Jack in the Beanstalk" by…

I've cringed in the past when people question the safety of center city Philadelphia when deciding whether or not to go to a concert, but the tables were turned Saturday night.  Would I be safe going to a concert in Camden by myself?  Rest assured, the answer was a resounding "yes!".  The concert was held in Gordon…

In yet another collaboration this weekend, the Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia, Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra, and pianist, Ching-Yun Hu came together to present an evening of Beethoven and Gill.  The concert began with a rousing performance of Beethoven's "Overture to Fidelio".  The Black Pearl Chamber Orchestra…

The moment I heard about the concept of this concert I was intrigued.  Billed as "The Winds of Yore...and Now!", the program squared off Piffaro, the Renaissance Band with …

I'm quite sure this wasn't planned, but the combination of creative concerts and collaborations in the world of classical music in Philadelphia makes this my most anticipated weekend of the season.  The selections are so interesting that I thought it would be good to provide a mini-guide and encourage those who attend to comment on their experiences here.  

There was only one way for me to schedule all the events I wished to attend, but some of these concerts are available on…

Curtis Symphony Orchestra

Verizon Hall at the Kimmel Center

February 17, 2013

It was a great joy for my husband and me to take friends with us to hear the Curtis Symphony Orchestra last weekend.  The program was excellent starting with a new composition from 2008 called “Rhapsodies for Orchestra” by Steven Stucky conducted by Vinay Parameswaran.  We had the additional fun of having Mr. Stucky attend the concert and…

Detailed information can sometimes backfire.  Such was the case Saturday night when I was looking forward to a leisurely drive in the country instead of my usual chaotic and unpredictable slog down the Schuylkill "Expressway" (which locals know first hand, is rarely "express" in any way) towards Philadelphia.…